Standard testing that utilize corrosion coupons can be used to measure general and local corrosion rates in industrial water systems. Standard testing involves placing an industry-standard corrosion coupon in a test space (e.g., an industrial water system) and allowing the corrosion coupon to be exposed to test space conditions, which may cause corrosion of the corrosion coupon. After a period of exposure time, generally 30-90 days or longer, the corrosion coupon is removed from the test space conditions. One or more of a series of tests is then performed to determine corrosion of the corrosion coupon, which generally corresponds to corrosion found on surfaces of the test space.
Standard testing using corrosion coupons has drawbacks. For example, “real-time” monitoring and analysis is not possible, as the corrosion coupon(s) are allowed to be exposed to test space conditions with little or no observation. Should the coupons be located so as to be observed, observation by the naked eye is subjective and generally not capable of observing subtle differences in coupons as the onset of corrosion begins to occur. Additionally, systems for detecting general corrosion typically lack the ability to detect or predict localized corrosion.